Over time and across cultures and countries, the working woman has taken many different shapes. Through the western world, today it is common to see women working, running businesses and raising a family (which in itself is a 24/7 appointment). The days are crammed from woe to go, if lunchtimes are had they are filled with errands and taking the time to actually sit and eat is a luxury she feels she cannot afford.

As a result, women (and men for that matter) are not well. And from what I see, day in day out, crossing the paths of many many women every single day, it is not the work itself that is the problem...or the family...it is the quality of how we live on a day-to-day basis.

Self-care often goes right out the window and life becomes about surviving and getting through, the day, the week and the year. Women are experiencing levels of anxiety and stress that are through the roof, not to mention thyroid conditions and heart disease...and this is just scraping the surface.

Self-care at work is one aspect of self-care that Dr Jane Keep discusses beautifully, offering another way for women in the workplace. Of course, self-care cannot remain in the workplace, it must extend to all aspects of life where a solid foundation can be built to actually enjoy work and everything else that life is offering.

There are 2 women (and more) that have been an enormous source of inspiration for me...so how can I not share them with you all?! What we have here is 2 very different women in very different professions, yet there is something about the quality with which they choose to live that makes their experience of work very different to what we currently see in modern life. This is something to take notice of in a very big way. All of what they do (and it is A LOT) comes without anxiety, stress and exhaustion and a productivity and efficiency that any CEO would bend over backwards for.

Natalie also volunteers her time to support global community projects all geared towards supporting true health and wellbeing. Anyone would think that she should be burnt out right? Wrong! Not only is Natalie NOT burnt out, she is forever blossoming, consistently steady, beautifully humble and literally 'on fire' everywhere she goes…this is how she does it…

1. How do you manage your work life and home life?Knowing that the most important part of work or home life is the quality of me that I bring to it. Managing the busy schedule of appointments, commitments and equally the quality of my well-being is something that remains in balance and not having one at the expense of the other.

2. Why is work important to you?My work is a medium through which I can bring my all to others, it is a way to not only enjoy my own life but equally share that true good with others and providing a true service that restores trust in people.

3. What is your number 1 self-care tip for working women?Remind yourself every day that it is about who you are and not what you do. This is paramount in self-care, as the then structuring of a daily routine and flow that supports one’s commitments is originating from a truly balanced feel and mind-set.

4. How did you build self-care at work?One step at a time. Consistency is where you start to see true and lasting results, so I will make a commitment to something ‘new’ or to make a change, and give it focus every day until it becomes ‘normal’. Simple daily tasks like what you eat, the way you’re answering the phone, going for a walk in a lunch break etc.

5. Did you have a mentor or someone that inspired you along the way?The teachings and workshops of Universal Medicine were my inspiration to understand a true work-life balance and what it means to self-care.

Terri-Anne Connors

Terri-Anne is hands down a master of business, currently employed as the Operations Manager for four high-end hairdressing salons and one retail shop and she manages over forty staff. Such a role is both demanding in its hours and management of people, staff and customers alike, of which Terri-Anne does extremely well. I have watched her with people and her engagement in business and have been suitably impressed by the effortless connections and impressions she makes wherever she goes.

On top of this full time position, Terri-Anne volunteers her time to support global health and wellbeing community projects, is a member of a major political party and she also co-manages a successful complimentary health care clinic.. Inspired? Read more from Terri-Anne.

1. How do you manage your work life and home life?Everything has a place and everything is important, not anything more than the other. The key for me is to take time for and enjoy every aspect of my life. For example I enjoy my time traveling in to the city for work each day, I enjoy making my bed and cleaning the kitchen, and mopping the floors as much as I enjoy training a team member or even disciplining a member of staff, I even enjoy dealing with a customer complaint. Because each is an opportunity to enjoy being with me, being comfortable in my own skin - it is also, often and importantly an opportunity to connect with people, my greatest joy.

2. Why is work important to you?I love work and I couldn't imagine life without it - I have always worked more than one job at a time. Work for me is about being with people and when you make it about that it becomes self-fulfilling and easy. I find I have an unending well of energy and joy when I work. I think it is important for each of us to work, forgetting how that might look like or whether it is casual or full time, paid or unpaid it is always an opportunity to grow and develop ourselves as people.

3. What is your number 1 self-care tip for working women?Take time for you throughout your day, even if it is just for that moment you take a sip of a hot cup of tea, or when you walk from one place to the next, I always connect in with my body and check how I am feeling.

4. How did you build self-care at work?Just like this, I have times where I consciously build in moments of stop and or check ins, this started for me with bathroom breaks. I would literally stop and enjoy this moment for me, not thinking or worrying about anything else but being present with what I was doing and while checking in with how I felt. I gave myself permission to be honest about what it was I was feeling and not give myself a hard time for it. It built from there, I then noticed how I could do this at other times and in other places at work.

5. Did you have a mentor or someone that inspired you along the way?Yes Serge Benhayon is and has been my inspiration for the past 12+ years, in both my working life and personal. He once said to me the key to working with your CEO/GM/Boss is show them that you are always working with them, not in opposition to them nor in competition with them. That you do not compromise who you are while respecting who they are - I now bring this way of being to everyone I work with regardless of their title or position.

Leave a Reply.

Sara Harris

Sara Harris is a complementary women's health specialist practising in Caulfield and Viewbank, Melbourne. She is the founder of a number of Programs for Girls and Women including the Girl to Woman Project. For more about Sara see About Sara Harris.